Former Traveling Baptist Minister Rejects Plea Bargain For Sex Crimes Against Children, Some From Florida

Former 30 year Interstate Baptist minister Douglas Wayne Myers, 63, who has served time in Florida on sex crime charges and was indicted late last year on 22 counts related to alleged child and sex abuse incidents, has rejected a deal from the Calvert County State’s Attorney’s Office to plead guilty to five of the counts. Myers is charged with 13 counts of child abuse/custodian, six counts of second-degree sex offense and three counts of third-degree sex offense, all alleged to have occurred between March 1995 and December 2000.

A plea bargain or plea deal is an agreement in criminal cases between the prosecutor and the accused whereby the accused in return for admitting guilt of a criminal charge, in return for some reduction in punishment from the prosecutor, either in the form of a lighter punishment for the original charge, or a less serious charge with lighter consequences than what was originally charged. This may mean that the accused will do one of the following:

– plead guilty to a less serious charge,
– plead to one of several charges, in return for the dismissal of the other non-pled charges, or
– plead guilty to the original criminal charge in return for a more lenient sentence.

Often, the accused will choose a plea deal in order to receive a less severe sentence
because of hedging the amount of time served for the crime, rather than betting their freedom on a gamble, the risk they take if they were to go to trial and be convicted.

Depending on the seriousness of the crime, and the amount of evidence against being used against the accused, sometimes the accused feels it is better to admit the crime and receive a sentence right away, rather than wait for a trial and a possibly larger sentence.

There are some benefits and detriments to pleading guilty in Jacksonville. Many times in Jacksonville, the deck is stacked and the State Attorney has enough evidence to convict one of the charge. Also, not all crimes allow for very many mitigating or lessening circumstances, much less an affirmative or alternative defense to the commission of the crime. Taking a plea deal in this situation can push the matter to resolution quickly without being forced to sit through a stressful crap-shoot trial.

Many times, plea deals might be a means for many to get out of jail. For some, the stress of jail is too much to handle and is understandable; jail is not a nice place. Many times, if the criminal is in custody and has no chance or opportunity to be bonded out, then a plea bargain is the other option for jail release.

The court favors plea bargains because they reduce the time and expense needed to move one’s case through the justice system. Prosecutors are not allowed to bargain with one if one is unrepresented; therefore, an attorney is necessary if one wishes to choose this path through the system. However, as the use of plea deals in Jacksonville, as well as around the nation, are being more and more inappropriately used and advised by attorneys, one needs to obtain an experienced attorney who will bargain in one’s favor rather than the prosecutor’s.

A plea bargain is not always the best option for the accused in a criminal suit. Some crimes may be too serious, and therefore require a trial. Others are clear cut cases of police misconduct or cases of tampered evidence that can and should be suppressed. However, many State attorneys will attempt to rush a plea agreement before the truth of one’s innocence or the invalidity of the evidence comes to light.

Many times, people commit crimes they would not normally ever think of doing; others are simply accused of things they did not do. When this happens, one should not talk to police, prosecutors, or any other individual but one’s experienced Jacksonville felony violent crimes defense attorney who will fight the case, ensuring that one does not become the victim of a powerful State operated legal system.

The Forbess Law Firm has been aiding clients who face criminal charges in Jacksonville for more than a decade and is here to provide aggressive criminal defense to anyone accused of a crime. If you or a loved one requires a Jacksonville criminal defense lawyer, contact our firm today. We are available through our website or by calling us at 904-634-0900.